Once Upon a Newsie
by Harthad
Summary: With the help of a mysterious portal, Crutchie gets abruptly taken from New York and sent to a mysterious world filled with princes, trolls, and magic. When he meets the prince of the Enchanted Forest, Charming, more questions arise. Why was that portal waiting for him? And will he get back to New York alive?
1. Chapter 1

New York City, New York, 1899

People shouted, children cried, horses neighed, wheels creaked and groaned while above the messy, distracting clang of the bustling New York streets, one clear newsboy's voice rose to hawk out the headlines of that afternoon's paper. The sun hung in the sky, casting oppressive heat over all the passerby who walked to and fro. Such it was that Crutchie stopped by the side of the road simply to wipe his brow. He was carrying his hat in his hand, uncovering his hot, sticky forehead to face the summer day. Crutchie took hold of his crutch again, and limped off into the masses to sell his newspapers. A sudden breeze tugged at his blonde hair, and he welcomed the coolness by turning his bright green eyes towards its direction. That same breeze mischievously brushed by his hat, and before Crutchie knew it, his cap had been ripped out of his hands and was tumbling away through the air like a small, plaid green flag. Crutchie immediately limped after it, swinging his free arm back and forth as he went as fast as he could. The wind led him far from the hustle and bustle of the crowds and into the quiet peace of Central Park. Crutchie never stopped or slowed his pace while following the wind, which seemed to be intent on leading him on a wild goose chase. Finally, the wind died in a small grove of trees, and his hat gently fluttered to the ground. Crutchie snatched it out of the air and placed it firmly back on his head, looking around. He had most likely lost a lot of business while trying to catch his hat, but Crutchie didn't particularly mind. It wasnt often that the city's newsies caught a break.

Crutchie wavered as the wind picked up again, watching the trees sway violently. He looked down with a gasp as the ground opened up beneath him in a giant swirl of purple and blue light. Crutchie yelled out in fright as he dropped through the hole, holding onto his crutch with a death grip. At sixteen years old, Crutchie had thought he had seen everything from being a newsie, but it looked like he was wrong. What was happening here could only be described as magic.

* * *

Crutchie fell head over heels onto a wooden bridge. He groaned, slowly sitting up and taking his legs out from underneath him. He straightened out his bad leg, and rubbed his eyes. Where was he? He stared at an immense, thick green forest that spread out as far as the eye could see. In the other direction, Crutchie saw a giant blue lake, far bigger than anything he had ever seen. On its banks far away from the bridge, was more of the forest. Crutchie had never seen a place like this in his life, except maybe in paintings. He stood up and started to walk around, his crutch giving a reassuring tap whenever he took a step. At least that reminded him of the city. Crutchie glanced back at the forest, unsure of where to go. He couldn't deny it; he was a bit afraid of the forest. In Crutchie's mind it was like an alleyway, filled with all sorts of people just waiting to beat you up. Crutchie began limping towards it, but froze when he heard a loud shuffling and grunting noise. The wooden boards creaked under his foot and crutch as he hesitantly took a step backwards. Crutchie's mouth opened in horror as two monstrous creatures stumbled out of the forest. Wearing nothing but brown, ragged shorts, they were hairless and ugly with layers of dirt all over them. Their faces were brutish and mean, and they at once surrounded Crutchie, who had all but frozen in fear.

The monsters began laughing, their voices grating and gravelly.

"You gonna pay the toll, welp?" One of the monsters snickered. Crutchie fearfully dug around in his pocket for his day's earnings.

"I-I think I-I got some money, sir," Crutchie stuttered, scared out of his mind. The trolls laughed uproarisly as Crutchie held out his meager assortment of coins. The troll who had spoken to him grabbed his arm in a crushing grip, and Crutchie gasped aloud in pain. He had been right. The forest did have people waiting to beat you up. The trolls snickered at his predicament.

"Too bad for you, you didn't pay the toll," the other troll snickered.

"But don't worry, welp-we'll make it up by having a nice, warm dinner," the troll explained.

"You're goin' tah feed me?" Crutchie asked, confused. He cried out in pain as the troll knocked his feet out from underneath him.

"No, welp," the troll smiled a wide, sickening grin, "We're going to eat you."

The trolls grabbed both his arms and dragged him away down the bridge, still laughing maliciously and ignoring their captive's pitiful cries for help.


	2. Chapter 2

The troll's hut had been concealed on the far bank of the lake, hidden by a mishmash of leaves, dirt and animal carcasses. It was a grisly reminder of what trolls did to their prey, Charming thought as he pushed aside some dead branches. He reached the mud hut all too soon, and drew his sword carefully so as to not make a sound that would disturb the monsters. His footsteps crunched loudly, and Charming dared not look down to see what-or whom-he was stepping on. The back door was flung open in a shower of leaves and branches, and Charming quickly ducked behind a crumbling stone wall. Heat emanated from inside the hut, and Charming winced as heard someone's cries for help. It sounded like a boy. The troll trundled over, scooping up more wood for the fire with his huge, meaty hands. Charming peeked over the top of the wall, watching the troll lumber back inside. Charming held his breath, but noticed that the back door was not closed. He slowly got up and creeped towards the open door. Charming flattened himself against the wall, and dared to look inside at the terrifying scene.

Crutchie was strung up like a piece of meat, dangling head first over a boiling hot cauldron. He had a wet gag in his mouth, and his hands were tied together with heavy rope. He swung slowly in a circle, watching the flames lick the air. The troll walked over to him, and grabbed his face to inspect him.

"There's hardly any meat on him," the troll sneered. "But we'll save him for the appetizer." He bared his teeth, and Crutchie closed his eyes in fear. The troll laughed, and grabbed a sword from the side of the hut. Crutchie whimpered in fear as the troll strode towards him, brandishing the sword. The troll smiled wickedly, and prepared to cut the rope so that Crutchie would fall into the cauldron.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

The troll whirled around, dropping the sword much to Crutchie's relief. Leaning up against the wall of the hut was Charming. He casually looked back at the door. "You know, you really should close your doors behind you. All sorts of creatures might come wandering in."

The troll snarled, and picked up the sword again. Charming shrugged. "Don't you think you're being a bit too hasty here? I mean, did you ever stop and really think about your dinner?" He slowly made his way around the cauldron, keeping the trolls fixated on him.

"You said it yourself," Charming continued. "He's got no meat on his bones." He waited until he was almost too near the troll, which was too stupid to comprehend this new threat. Charming thrust his sword up, parrying a blow from the troll. Metal clashed on metal as Charming led the troll to the other side of the hut, finally slaying the beast with a thrust in the stomach. Dancing embers licked the air as Charming strode over to the boiling cauldron, taking ahold of the rope to lower the boy down. He quickly untied his gag and hands, helping the boy to his feet.

"There you are," Charming pronounced as he let go of the boy. "Good as-" He frowned as the boy fell down again. "What's wrong?"

"My crutch," the boy explained. "I can't walk around without it," he said, and Charming left his side to look around the hut for the object.

"What's your name?" Charming asked as he walked around.

"Crutchie," Crutchie stated, sitting up.

Charming nodded approvingly. "Makes sense." He grabbed a long wooden pole with a handle and a cloth covered ledge. "Is this it?"

Crutchie made no reply except gurgling choking sounds as a meaty hand was wrapped around his throat. He stared into the eyes of the other troll as it moved him over the cauldron.

They had forgotten about this troll.


	3. Chapter 3

Charming dropped the crutch and drew his sword. "Put him down," he warned the troll, who just sneered. "I won't say it again."

The troll tightened its grip on Crutchie's throat, and Charming walked towards him, relieved the troll didnt think to grab a weapon. The troll stood there stupidly as it concentrated solely on Crutchie, not noticing Charming's sword until it was plunged into his belly. The troll glanced down, and started to fall. It let go of Crutchie, who fell to the ground with a terror-filled cry. Charming caught him in his arms, and tried to wink.

"Let's not make a habit of this, shall we?"

He deposited Crutchie back on the ground and went to retrieve the crutch. Crutchie rubbed his throat, swallowing. What kind of a place was this, with mysterious rescuers and trolls who wanted to eat you? He looked over at the two dead trolls and suddenly felt sick.

"Here you are," Charming handed Crutchie his crutch. Crutchie muttered a quick thanks and stood up, leaning on the crutch's ledge and holding the handle. He smiled at Charming, his fear dissolving. "Thank you, sir."

"No problem, Crutchie," Charming replied, and shook the boy's hand. "I'm Prince Charming."

Crutchie raised an eyebrow. "Yous a prince?" He asked. "Why'd you come to rescue me?"

"That," Charming said, "Is a great conversation for later. Right now, we should go. I don't really want to run into another troll, do you?"

Crutchie shook his head, following Charming out the door. They walked over to the horse, which was just grazing contentedly.

"Can you ride?" Charming asked as he got on the back of his horse.

Crutchie shrugged. "I've nevah tried, sir."

Charming reached down and hoisted Crutchie up. Crutchie held onto his crutch carefully as the horse began trotting forward, soon breaking into a full gallop. Crutchie held onto Charming's robes, trying not to get hit in the face by his cape.

"We make no stops til nightfall," Charming told him as they rode on through the forest.


End file.
